The Study of the Trap of Powerlessness in the Process of an Identity-related Illness: A Case Study on HIV/AIDS Women in Kerman

The aim of the present study is a sociological investigation of women suffering from HIV/AIDS through an emic approach.  The study utilizes the qualitative method of grounded theory, and the field of the research is Kerman, with the participants being women referring to the behavioral diseases counseling center. The data were collected via sequential interviews with fifty women. Data analysis culminated in five categories and one core category which were: exclusion-support, biographical disruption, vagueness of  the patient’s rights, double powerlessness, and losing self. The core category was “The trap of women’s powerlessness in the process of an identity-oriented disease.” Generally, the findings indicate that the women’s powerlessness is a consequence of their exclusion and biographical disruption in the process of the disease. Also, the  powerlessness in conjunction with the gender powerlessness culminated in weakness of the patient’s agency during treatment.